TEACHER REPORT

Name of Teacher Kan Min-Yen

Module CS3244-Machine Learning (LECTURE)

Academic Year/Sem 2022/2023 - SEM 1

Department COMPUTER SCIENCE

Faculty SCHOOL OF COMPUTING

Raters Student
Responded 148
Invited 237
Response Ratio 62%

Note:
Class Size = Invited; Response Size = Responded; Response Rate = Response Ratio

A. GUIDELINES FOR INTERPRETING THE REPORT

The teacher evaluation report is for developmental purposes and is meant to help identify strengths and areas for
improvement. Please consider the following recommendations that will aid in interpreting the results:

1. Examine the report by taking note of patterns in order to consider how best to act on the feedback your students
have taken the time to provide. Use the reflection section at the end to reflect upon how you might act on the
feedback.

2. These evaluations stem from student perception and thus constitute one source of evidence among others as to
the quality of your teaching. Any response to the feedback should be based on the most representative results
rather than on outlying responses.

3. Upon getting a general sense as to what has gone well, and which areas may require attention and
improvement, it is important to drill down to the related questions. These questions can help guide future action
if feedback from students suggest areas for improvement.

4. Keep both the likert scale and written comments in mind while reading through the report. High scores (4+)
suggest student consensus indicating a strength. On the other hand, low scores (2-) should be considered as
an area that requires immediate developmental focus based on student feedback.
B. NOMINATION FOR TEACHING AWARDS

Response Count
I would like to nominate Kan Min-Yen for teaching awards 26

Comment
- Very hardworking prof who attends to our questions and give feedback even at 12am
- enthusiastic about teaching, keeps check on students
- Prof Kan Min–Yen is patient and friendly, he tried his best to make this module interesting
- Engaging lectures
- He is a really passionate professor who really explains every small detail really really well. He has made me more appreciative of
the subject.
- Interesting lectures and put in the effort to do the slides
- Patient lecturer who cares for the student to understand
- Great professor, teaches classes with passion and makes effort to make complicated concepts understandable.
- Engaging and can really see his passion for the subject, really made me more interested in ML! :D Slides are well crafted and can
really tell that he cares about our learning through the feedback sessions, midterm surveys etc 10/10 :))
- Teaching Style and Use of Slack for teaching
- Justifies the reasoning for everything that is taught and with infectious enthusiasm
- Very good at teaching.
- Very engaging with the class, through the Slack pre–lecture activity. Visualizations in his slides are very helpful in understanding
the concepts being taught.
- Prof Min’s enthusiasm in teaching encourages us to think creatively
- Prof Min is an amazing lecturer and his support towards students is really appreciated.
- Great professor that is passionate about ML and helping students appreciate/understand it better
- Enjoyable and interesting lectures.
- passionate in the subject
- Inspiring prof
- Generally a very friendly and approachable teacher that cares about the quality of his teaching as well as his students well being
- A really effective communicator and is passionate about the subject which he is teaching.
- He's been responsible and nice. I enjoy learning in his class.
- Reasons above
- Brilliant and effective teacher
- Excellent communicator, an inspiration for me in the field
- Great lecturer who not only explains concepts well but makes an effort to help students.
- Unique teaching style and improved interest greatly

C. STUDENT FEEDBACK SCORES

(i) Rating Score

Department
Faculty Average
Average Score Average
(SCHOOL OF
(TEACHER) (COMPUTER
Question COMPUTING)
SCIENCE)
Standard Standard Standard
Mean Mean Mean
Deviation Deviation Deviation
Overall, the teacher is effective. 4.2 0.8 4.2 0.8 4.2 0.8
 Dept
Fac Average
Average by Dept
by Activity & Fac Average
Activity & Average by
Average Level by Activity
Level Activity
Score (SCHOOL OF (SCHOOL OF
Question (COMPUTER (COMPUTER
(TEACHER) COMPUTING- COMPUTING-
SCIENCE- SCIENCE-
LECTURE LECTURE)
LECTURE LECTURE)
(Level 3000))
(Level 3000))
Mean Mean Mean Mean Mean
Overall, the teacher is effective. 4.2 4.0 4.0 4.2 4.2

Overall, the teacher is effective

Department
Faculty Average
Average Score Average
(SCHOOL OF
(TEACHER) (COMPUTER
Question COMPUTING)
SCIENCE)
Standard Standard Standard
Mean Mean Mean
Deviation Deviation Deviation
The teacher has enhanced my thinking ability. 4.3 0.7 4.2 0.8 4.2 0.8
The teacher provided timely and useful feedback. 4.3 0.8 4.2 0.8 4.2 0.8
The teacher has increased my interest in the subject. 4.3 0.8 4.2 0.8 4.1 0.9
Average of Q1-Q3 4.3 0.8 4.2 - 4.2 -
 Dept
Fac Average
Average by Dept
by Activity & Fac Average
Activity & Average by
Average Level by Activity
Level Activity
Score (SCHOOL OF (SCHOOL OF
Question (COMPUTER (COMPUTER
(TEACHER) COMPUTING- COMPUTING-
SCIENCE- SCIENCE-
LECTURE LECTURE)
LECTURE LECTURE)
(Level 3000))
(Level 3000))
Mean Mean Mean Mean Mean
The teacher has enhanced my thinking ability. 4.3 4.1 4.1 4.2 4.2
The teacher provided timely and useful feedback. 4.3 4.0 4.0 4.1 4.1
The teacher has increased my interest in the subject. 4.3 4.0 4.0 4.2 4.1
Average of Q1-Q3 4.3 4.0 4.0 4.2 4.1

Department Specific Questions

Department
Average Score Average
(TEACHER) (COMPUTER
Question SCIENCE)
Standard Standard
Mean Mean
Deviation Deviation
The teacher engaged me in useful interactions that have enhanced my learning. 4.3 0.7 4.2 0.8

Department
Average Score Average
(TEACHER) (COMPUTER
Question SCIENCE)
Standard Standard
Mean Mean
Deviation Deviation
The teacher's attitude and approach encouraged me to think and work in a creative and
4.3 0.7 4.2 0.8
independent way.

Department
Average Score Average
(TEACHER) (COMPUTER
Question SCIENCE)
Standard Standard
Mean Mean
Deviation Deviation
The teacher cares about student development and learning. 4.4 0.7 4.2 0.8
(ii) Distribution of Responses and Additional Statistics
1. The teacher has enhanced my thinking ability. 2. The teacher provided timely and useful feedback.

Statistics Value Statistics Value

Response Count 147 Response Count 147
Mean 4.3 Mean 4.3
Median 4.0 Median 4.0
Mode 4 Mode 4
80th Percentile 5.0 80th Percentile 5.0
Standard Deviation 0.7 Standard Deviation 0.8
Positive Feedback 89% Positive Feedback 89%

3. The teacher has increased my interest in the subject. 4. Overall, the teacher is effective.

Statistics Value Statistics Value

Response Count 147 Response Count 147
Mean 4.3 Mean 4.2
Median 4.0 Median 4.0
Mode 4 Mode 4
80th Percentile 5.0 80th Percentile 5.0
Standard Deviation 0.8 Standard Deviation 0.8
Positive Feedback 88% Positive Feedback 88%
The teacher engaged me in useful interactions that have enhanced my learning.

The teacher engaged me in useful interactions that have

enhanced my learning.

Statistics Value
Response Count 147
Mean 4.3
Median 4.0
Mode 4
80th Percentile 5.0
Standard Deviation 0.7
Positive Feedback 89%

The teacher's attitude and approach encouraged me to think and work in a creative and independent way.

The teacher's attitude and approach encouraged me to think and

work in a creative and independent way.

Statistics Value
Response Count 147
Mean 4.3
Median 4.0
Mode 4
80th Percentile 5.0
Standard Deviation 0.7
Positive Feedback 88%
The teacher cares about student development and learning.

The teacher cares about student development and learning.

Statistics Value
Response Count 147
Mean 4.4
Median 4.0
Mode 5
80th Percentile 5.0
Standard Deviation 0.7
Positive Feedback 91%

(iii) Scale Distribution of Responses

The teacher engaged me in useful interactions that have enhanced my learning.

The teacher's attitude and approach encouraged me to think and work in a creative and independent way.

The teacher cares about student development and learning.

(iv) Rating Scores vs. Gender

Question M F Overall
The teacher has enhanced my thinking ability. 4.3 4.3 4.3
The teacher provided timely and useful feedback. 4.3 4.3 4.3
The teacher has increased my interest in the subject. 4.3 4.3 4.3

D. STRENGTHS

What are Kan Min-Yen's strengths?

Comments
Good clear explanations, nice use of examples
Interesting lectures and put in the effort to do the slides
Patience to explain concepts clearly to students, use of real–world example which clears the understanding
Interactive classes, lively lectures
Engaging and can really see his passion for the subject, really made me more interested in ML! :D

Slides are well crafted and can really tell that he cares about our learning through the feedback sessions, midterm surveys etc
Clear explanation across various concepts.
Justifies the reasoning for everything that is taught.
Dry humour was widely appreciated in the somewhat dry lectures for ML.
Has a good sense of humour.
Very engaging with the class, through the Slack pre–lecture activity. Visualizations in his slides are very helpful in understanding the
concepts being taught.
Prof Min is a great lecturer who cares a lot about the students. His lectures were so easy to follow and really helped build my
foundation in ML.
provides useful analogies to help students understand concepts better
intonation and filled with emotions when delivering his lectures
He really cares about students learning outcomes and uses analogies in lecture to explain better, which is a rare trait in uni profs
Comments
Interesting delivery at a good pace.
Goes through the content much more slowly which makes it more understandable for slower learners like me
He explains difficult concepts well, i like his notes, the font colours are friendly.
Very clear and engaging teaching style.
Good lecturer with fun analogies to help understand content
explains concepts in a simple manner
Really cares about the student's understanding of the concepts being taught in class
Can feel his passion for Machine Learning through the lectures
He's been responsible and nice. I enjoy learning in his class.
Prof. Min–Yen is very responsible, he holds consultation sessions for projects and take notes for the meeting each time.
Good domain knowledge
Passionate
Can tell the amount of experience he has in this field.
–
Explanation is well done.
Prof Min is very knowledgeable, and he is willing to stay back after class to answer questions
Min is an awesome teacher who is able to simplify complex topics in a manner which makes it super easy for students to grasp.
Absolutely love his informal–formal teaching style.
Teaching style, analogies, understandability of his content
–
nil
NA
Passionate
Prof Min is very clear in his explanations and very willing to answer our questions and give feedback on our projects.
Very clear lecture and approachable when students ask questions.
kind professor who puts a lot of effort into his teaching!
Clear and intuitive explanation. Easy to follow, easy to understand.
nil
Clear in his explanations and slides; willing to respond to students' queries.
Good at giving examples.
E. AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT

What improvements would you suggest to Kan Min-Yen?

Comments
NA
Could have more quizzes weekly to test students understanding of lecture contents
–
Lecture more modules :D
Can probably speak a little quicker, and slides are lacking details that would be useful for future reference and revision
Slides could be more self–explanatory (symbols, definitions)
Add key points to the slides instead of verbalizing them.
Sometimes, a large amount of time would be spent covering the pre–lecture activity/content not being examined in the module,
which felt like a waste of time. A brief overview of the pre–lecture activity would be sufficient.
–
Maybe It would be better if prof could allocate more time answering students queries! :)
in fact, to the whole mod, perhaps can just standardise on using one set of slides.
Teach more linear algebra for more in depth appreciation of ML concepts, like PCA
Timekeeping was an issue for the first half of the semester
–
include more content in lecture notes
Lectures are too general without building on content via some basic examples
No.
Provide more structured lecture note for revision
nil
–
–
Prof Min's slides do not have much details, and during the course of revision, it might be hard to recall what each slide is about.
None
–
nil
NA
Use more words in slides
Provide more structure in slides
Prof Min could go further into the topics taught during lecture to further enhance our knowledge in this topic.
Mathematical rigor is somewhat missing, and some notation is mixed up and caused confusion.
nil
Would be nice to have a more mathematically rigorous approach in developing machine learning concepts, as this tends to be the
case with the harder questions in the tutorial and in more advanced modules.
Can focus more on theoretical concepts than proofs.
F. SELF-REFLECTION
1. When comparing these results to the previous year's results, what areas have shown improvement?

2. What areas remain to be improved and what are the necessary steps / actions to do so?

3. Are there colleagues who could potentially guide me?

4. Are there issues that require departmental or institutional support?